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Thursday, September 17, 2026
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Opposition voices $311m ‘off books’ spend concern BY NEIL HARTNELL TRIBUNE Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net THE OPPOSITION yesterday challenged if the $311m spent from the National Investment Fund represents “off-the-books capital expenditure” structured so as not to blow the Government’s Budget surplus in the election run-up as a Cabinet minister asserted it had followed the law. Michael Pintard, the Free National Movement (FNM) leader, told Tribune Business it was clear the Davis administration had used the Fund, the equivalent of a Bahamian sovereign wealth fund, as “a side account” that allowed it to spend the public’s money seemingly without any oversight “in an election year”. And he was backed by Dr Duane Sands, the Opposition’s chairman, who asserted that Michael Halkitis, minister of finance, in the Government’s long-awaited response to concerns over its management of the Fund, had made “a striking admission”
Pintard charges National Investment Fund used as ‘side account’
that its monies had been used for what are typical capital expenditures “that largely could only come from the Consolidated Fund” that deals with most public revenues and spending. However, Mr Halkitis, speaking to Tribune and other reporters, rejected Opposition charges and concerns from others by reiterating the Government had stayed within “the exercise of the
THE “AVERAGE” 30 percent water rate increases facing Grand Bahama businesses and households are designed to plug an estimated $1m revenue shortfall and help finance its supplier’s proposed $9.5m capital investment plan over five years. Grand Bahama Utility Company, the monopoly water supplier that is 100 percent owned by the Grand Bahama Port Authority’s (GBPA’s) sister entity, Port Group Ltd, sought to justify the hikes for its 11,500-strong
customer base by citing “a sharp increase in fuel costs of about 30 percent” as one of “three main drivers”. A summary of its threeyear tariff proposal, published on the website of the GBPA, its regulator and the body that must approve the rate increase package, said the $5m investment in its two million gallon-per-day reverse osmosis plant - a response to Hurricane Dorian’s saltwater contamination of its traditional wellfields - has increased energy costs which have been further exacerbated by the spike in global oil prices.
have monthly bills below $50 and would therefore remain exempt from VAT, compared with approximately 80 percent under the current rates.” Comparing current tariffs with the projected water rates if its proposal is fully approved, Grand Bahama Utility Company is forecasting that the monthly billing increase will be $2.57 - from $12.83 to $15.40 - for customers using 2,000 gallons or less. Those consuming between 2,001 and 10,000 gallons will, on average, see their monthly bill jump by $1.41 per 1,000 gallons, while those using
REVIEW - See Page B10
FINDINGS - See Page B9
MICHAEL PINTARD
MICHAEL HALKITIS
law” in relation to the Fund and how its monies and other assets have been managed over the past year-and-a-half. While acknowledging the governance deficiencies, the minister signalled that the Government had acted in accordance with legal advice from the Attorney General’s Office that - until the National Investment Funds Act 2022 becomes fully activated - the Fund is governed by the Public Finance Management Act, and thus comes under the oversight and control of the Ministry of Finance and Public Treasury.
Mr Halkitis said the Government is now working to make the Fund fully operational by completing “all the administrative procedures”, including the regulations governing its workings and appointment of an investment committee, “definitely before the end of the year” as he pledged: “We are going to put this behind us.” Speaking earlier in the House of Assembly, he disclosed that $310.9m has been taken from the Fund to-date for investment
Grand Bahama Utility Company also cited the investment in its “multi-year meter change-out” initiative, with half of the devices set for installation said to be ‘smart meters’, as the third factor behind its application for rate increases. Reiterating that the impact will depend on a customer’s monthly water consumption, the utility said: “For the average residential household, the estimated increase would be $9.83 per month…. “Grand Bahama Utility Company estimates that, under the proposed rates, approximately 75 percent of customers would continue to
TEAM BAHAMAS AT THE 53RD CARIFTA GAMES
CARIFTA Games oversight ‘deficient from its inception’ BY NEIL HARTNELL TRIBUNE Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net PARLIAMENT’S spending watchdog yesterday said the governance framework for the 50th CARIFTA Games was “deficient from its inception” with organisers beset by “uncertainty” over who was responsible for key decisions. The Opposition-controlled Public Accounts Committee (PAC), in a report tabled in Parliament, said the confusion was highlighted when veteran civil servant and permanent secretary, Howard Thompson, who chaired the local organising committee (LOC) for the track and field championships held in The Bahamas during Easter 2023, asserted it had no responsibility for financial matters.
‘Every cent accounted for: ExCARIFTA head blasts watchdog over ‘conflict of interest’ THE CHIEF executive for the 50th CARIFTA Games yesterday blasted “every penny was accounted for right down to the last five cents” as he hit back at “transparency, value for money” and other woes raised by Parliament’s spending watchdog over the $500,000 advance he gave. Lynden Maycock told Tribune Business he received no profits or financial gain from The Bahamas hosting the 50th regional track and field championships over Easter weekend 2023 after the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) raised “conflict of interest” concerns over himself and his accounting firm, Accounting Outsource Services, being reimbursed $524,000 from a publicly-funded event he was overseeing. The report, tabled in the House of Assembly yesterday by Opposition leader Michael Pintard, made no findings that money was missing or had been misappropriated by anyone, and Mr Maycock questioned how there was any conflict in him being reimbursed for a funding advance made through his company to ensure the CARIFTA Games ran smoothly. “What’s the problem?” he charged. Mr Maycock disclosed that it was common practice for himself, and other private and corporate philanthropists, to make donations to prominent sporting events in The Bahamas to enable their smooth functioning and staging. This, he said, occurred with The Bahamas’ hosting of the IAAF World Relays in 2014 and 2015 as donors stepped up to fill funding gaps until the Government could assist. Asserting that the CARIFTA Games were nothing different, Mr Maycock said he and Accounting Outsource Services stepped into the financial breach through his own “personal funds”. He added that the championships “didn’t even have a budget starting out”, and were “grossly under-funded by the Government” as he and other organisers grappled with significant “political interference” to make them a success and The Bahamas show well. The former CARIFTA Games chief executive also reiterated to this newspaper what he told the Public Accounts Committee - that the $500,000 advance, and subsequent reimbursement - were approved by Simon Wilson, the Ministry of Finance’s financial secretary. “I told the Committee that if the financial secretary, Simon Wilson, was not in that office,
EXPENDITURE - See Page B11
GB water supplier: Hikes to cover $1m revenue gap BY NEIL HARTNELL TRIBUNE Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
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BY NEIL HARTNELL TRIBUNE Business Editor nhartnell@tribunemedia.net
Minister pledges to address governance issues ‘before year-end’ Spending watchdog seeks Treasurer meeting; FNM in legal moves
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However, he was contradicted by other witnesses appearing before the Committee, who said this lay variously with the Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture, the Games’ executive committee and other officials. Mr Thompson had said financial oversight rested with the management committee. “One of the recurring themes throughout the inquiry was uncertainty regarding who was responsible for key decisions,” the Committee said. “The clearest example arose in relation to financial oversight. Harrison Thompson, who served as chairman of the Local Organising Committee, testified that the LOC had no responsibility for the financial aspects of the Games and that
ATHLETICS - See Page B9